


Gilded Leaves, A Route Not Taken

by Aegis_of_Abel



Category: Fire Emblem: Fuukasetsugetsu | Fire Emblem: Three Houses
Genre: Alternate Universe - Canon Divergence, Ashe Is The Main Lord, F/M, Lonato Lives, M/M, relationship exploration
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2019-12-08
Updated: 2020-02-11
Packaged: 2021-02-26 05:28:55
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 3
Words: 6,088
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/21718453
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Aegis_of_Abel/pseuds/Aegis_of_Abel
Summary: One choice. That's all it took, and Ashe chose to spare his father. His choice will send quakes through the very foundation of Fódlan, shaking the very Church of Serios to it's knees. The gilded leaves of new beginnings are starting to fall.
Relationships: Ashe Duran | Ashe Ubert/My Unit | Byleth, Ashe Duran | Ashe Ubert/Petra Macneary, Caspar von Bergliez/Ashe Duran | Ashe Ubert
Comments: 10
Kudos: 31





	1. You're a Flame in my Heart

Chapter 1: You’re a Flame in my Heart

“I cannot let you kill him!” The silver haired boy, Ashe yelled at his comrades before him, shielding the weakened man behind him who had come to be his adoptive father, Lonato. The boy gripped his bow tightly, training an arrow on the group, ready to strike should he need to. “He is defeated, there is no need to kill him! If you must… well I won’t make it easy!”

“Ashe…” The weakened man tried to speak from behind him, but Ashe chose to ignore it, he wouldn’t let himself be talked down. His comrades that stood in front of him looked hurt, aside from Edelgard and Hubert, who just looked on silently. Ashe knew they weren’t the most empathetic types but allowing this scene to play out was cold.

Ashe glanced at Caspar and Petra, his two closest friends since he had transferred to the Black Eagle house by his request to the professor, his stomach felt tight when he looked to them opposite him. When he looked to the professor all he could see in her eyes were nothing, the woman he had sat and had lunch with or would talk to around the monastery wasn’t present here.

“Ashe, these are Lady Rhea’s orders, I will not allow your tantrum to keep me from them!” A voice yelled from his left. The voice belonged to the blonde knight of Seiros that had accompanied them on this mission, Catherine. She had waited until almost the last possible moment to make her presence known, the blade of Thunderbrand was almost upon him, with the blade’s trajectory it would cut him clean in two from his shoulder to his hip in a matter of seconds. 

Byleth, the professor’s eyes went wide as she witnessed the fatal slice, a feeling that was new to her welled up in her stomach, she couldn’t bear it, even if this boy had just turned against her and her class. She called on Sothis, she would save this boy once but after that it was out of her hands. A memory flashed into her mind as she did.

~

“Excuse me Professor? What brings you to the greenhouse today?” The silver haired boy asks eagerly, he had found the woman staring at a planter of red flowers. Ashe had found that his and the woman’s paths had crossed a lot around the monastery lately, but he had found himself even going to the extent of seeking her out at times, this was one of those days.

“This flower, when I look at it…” The woman pauses, taking in the beauty of the red flower that had caught her attention upon entering the greenhouse, she reaches a hand out to pick one, and she turns to hand it to Ashe. “When I look at it, I thought of you…”

Byleth had not meant to offend the boy in any way but for some reason his face appeared to have turned bright red, he didn’t seem angry though. Byleth was confused but there was also an uplifting feeling in her center.

“O-Oh thank you P-Professor.” The boy stutters, his cheeks still red from just having received a red camellia from his teacher. The red camellia symbolized the phrase ‘You are a flame in my heart.’ It was possible that she had not known what the flower meant but having received it still had Ashe off in another world. Byleth tilted her head in confusion but took comfort in the fact that it appeared she had not angered him. “Would you like to go and eat lunch together Professor? Caspar, Petra and I were going to meet to have lunch and I’m sure they would be happy for you to join us.”

Byleth had agreed, and from then on it had seemed that almost every day she had been eating lunch with Ashe, Caspar and Petra. The memory made her feel warm inside, she resolved herself to saving this boy.

~

“Ashe, these are Lady Rhea’s orders, I will not allow your tantrum to keep me from them!” A voice yelled from Ashe’s left. The methods for saving Ashe this second time around were limited as Sothis’ powers did not allow for a huge leap back in time. Byleth went with the only option she saw available to her; she ran in front of the blade before it came down on the boy. Catherine jumped back, dropping her sword as she hit the professor in the back of the shoulder.

“Professor!” The boy yelled as he looked on in horror, why would she do something so reckless?! She smiled up at him, before the loss of her blood started to make her lose her bearings.

“You get… this chance… free Ashe…” She said as she closed her eyes. A tear started to roll down the boy’s cheek, but he ignored it. 

“Linhardt! Quick, you must heal her!” Edelgard yelled to the drowsy healer, he was already by the professor’s side by the time the command reached him though. He looked up at Ashe as he healed their professor but remained silent. 

Catherine just looked on at the events unfolding in horror, before snapping herself out of her trance like state. She grabbed her sword and made for her initial target, Lonato amongst the confusion. She brought her sword down again, but this time was caught by the blade of another. 

“I am not believing that I would be doing this! We best be making the plan Ashe!” The purple haired Brigid swordswoman said with a smile as she fended off her opponent’s attack. 

“It’s your call buddy, where are we headed?” A voice yells from a just behind Petra, it belonged to Caspar, who already had Lonato slung over his shoulders. “I may not be the tallest, but I can do this much!”

“Guys…” Ashe said sentimentally. Placing this burden on them was not something he had wished to do, but he was also relived that he would not have to fight his best friends. He snapped himself out of what he had been feeling, they were right. He had created this situation; it was up to him to get them out of it. He saw an unguarded path just behind the ruins, it was their best shot as things stood, and the professor had given him this opportunity, he needed to take it. “This way!”

Caspar and Petra both nodded. Petra parried the blade that she had been fending off back, giving her moments to get away. Caspar had already started following Ashe and the three would start running together with an injured Lonato. Catherine prepared to give chase, but the silver haired maiden that had been with their party stood in front of her. 

“Catherine, as things stand now the professor’s safety is of our utmost priority. Lady Rhea would be beside herself if the professor were to perish here, no? And by your own hand no less…” Edelgard said to the blonde woman, rather slyly though her expression wouldn’t show as much. All Catherine could do was groan in defeat, the student before her was right.

“Everyone, fall back to Garreg Mach!” Catherine yelled to the other students and the surrounding soldiers. As everyone prepared to head back, Hubert had an unconscious Byleth slung over his shoulder, and all Catherine could do was watch the three and their own injured run off until they were no longer in sight.

~

“I think we can stop now.” Ashe said as he allowed himself to start panting once he knew they were a good distance from the knights and the rest of his former class. They couldn’t keep running without a plan, and Caspar couldn’t carry Lonato forever. They sat away from the path amongst some trees. “I’m really sorry everyone…”

“It’s fine Ashe, really.” The blue haired boy says to him, giving him a light slap on the back as he does so. He prepares one of his trademark smiles as he says, “You’re close to me Ashe, I wasn’t gonna leave ya there high and dry!”

“It was the right thing to be doing, for my father I would be doing the same actions.” Petra says as she wraps an unconscious Lonato’s wound in a medicine she had created from the plants she had found around them. Caspar seems to stiffen at the mention of Petra’s father. “We must be deciding where to be going from here now though.”

Ashe was overwhelmed by his feelings upon hearing their conviction and the events of the day, he burst into tears. Caspar embraced him in a hug and patted his back as he allowed him to let all of his feelings out. By the time his sobs ended it had been by his own falling into a sleep. Caspar chuckled as he looked down at the boy and Petra sighed, but the smile on her face was not fake.

“We will be making camp here for the night then, I will be keeping first lookout.” Petra says as she starts to collect materials scattered around to make a small campfire. 

It was a risk to light a fire when they were meant to be hiding but Petra had assessed the environment, the density of the leaves in the trees above would allow little smoke to pass through and the thicket of trees they found themselves in had thick enough trunks that they would block out light to any onlookers from a distance. She got to work; Caspar would rest Ashe’s head down on the grass beneath them before going to assist her.

~

The Archbishop, Rhea paced back and forth in her chamber on the second floor of the monastery. She had recently been informed by Catherine that her newest professor had been injured dearly in the fierce battle that ensued between herself and the heretic Lonato. It gave her satisfaction knowing that he did indeed pay for his sins in the end, but she had also been informed that three of the students of the monastery had also lost their lives during the battle, this brought her little comfort. While she continued to pace she remained unaware of the presence lurking in the shadows…


	2. A Small Respite

By the time Ashe awoke light was being filtered through the growth of leaves above. It was daylight. A sense of panic suddenly overcame him, he looked around frantically to confirm if his fears were unfounded. He saw Petra perched on a fallen log, she appeared to be carving something out of wood with her hunting knife. Something odd to note was that her hair appeared to have been recently wet. Lonato was now awake as well, much to the boy’s relief. He seemed to be inspecting some maps and documents he had on his person, though from the distance at which he lay he could not make out what was on them though. Panic started to well up inside him when he noticed that Caspar was not here.

“Where’s Caspar?” The boy asks almost frantically. The two others jump when they hear his sudden outburst. Lonato is the first to answer the boy’s question.

“Do not worry yourself Ashe, your friend is over by the base of the waterfall a few meters off. You are welcome to go and join him, we will be fine here.” The man says, gesturing in the direction he spoke of. The boy breathed a sigh of relief and got up to do just that. 

~

“You are not to be telling him?” Petra asks the ivory haired man after Ashe is out of earshot. The man sighs. 

“The boy has been through a lot; we needn’t add to his concerns right now.” The man says as he looks over to the bushes a few meters off. “I know the boy, and that just wouldn’t sit right with him at all…”

Petra looks over to the same bushes and sighs.

~

Ashe followed the sound of the water to find the way to the waterfall he was told about. ‘Why would Caspar be all the way out here?’ he thought to himself as he continued navigating his way through the bushes. Eventually he found his way to a clearing at the base of the waterfall but there was no sign of Caspar. As he investigated the site he found a pair of black pants with a tinge of red perched on a low branch and his heart sank. Not far off from the pants he found the white button up he knew his friend to wear sitting on a fallen tree, the boy started to panic.

“Caspar! Caspar! Are you all right? Where are you?” The boy sang out, biting his tongue when he realized that they were currently fugitives. But that didn’t matter, it was possible that his friend had been taken off with by wolves. He heard the water by him start to shift and jumped a little out of fear.

“Heya Ashe! What’s got you so panicked?” A voice said from behind him, he turned, and relief hit him all at once. Caspar stood there in the water, naked. Realization dawned on Ashe and his face went red. Caspar was at the waterfall to bathe, his clothes were where they were so that he could grab them when he got out, and Ashe had just run in on him and jumped to hasty conclusions.

“I’m so sorry!” The boy says firmly with a sudden bow. Caspar was confused but the scene caused a chuckle to rise from him anyway.

“I don’t know what for, but whatever it is it’s fine Ashe.” The blue haired boy says with a grin. Ashe loosens up a little at his words, allowing himself to look Caspar in the eyes again, still slightly blushing from having seen him naked. “Why don’t you hop in Ashe? It was a tough battle yesterday and it is not fun walking around all sticky from the day before.”

“I guess I am feeling rather dirty.” The boy says realizing that he hadn’t bathed last night like he usually would each night. He took Caspar up on his offer and removed all of his clothes, placing them by Caspar’s. When he entered the water at first it was cold, but the water touching his dirt caked skin was also rather pleasant. The dirt and dried sweat just seemed to dissolve off.

Come to think of it, when Ashe awoke, Petra looked as though she had recently gotten wet. ‘I’ll have to thank her for finding this place later.’ he thought to himself.

“Better?” Caspar asks with a smug look, also slightly blushing from their current situation. Ashe just nods before closing his eyes and laying against the shallow of the water. “Petra more or less insisted I jump in here this morning, so here I am.”

Ashe felt like there was more to it with the way Caspar spoke, and he couldn’t get the vision of the stain of red he saw on Caspar’s pants when he entered the clearing. ‘You’re overthinking things.’ He thinks to himself, they were just in a pretty big battle yesterday, and Caspar is a close combatant so surely it was from yesterday.

“Hey Caspar, I know you said it was fine, but why did you choose to follow me yesterday?” The boy asks the other boy as they both float about in the crystal blue water. The question had plagued him since yesterday. Petra had claimed it was because she would have done the same, but Ashe didn’t fully believe that either. It’s a bit before Caspar comes out with an answer. 

“I’m not really good at this…” Caspar says as he raises his arm to rest his right hand on the back of his head. “I guess that just in that moment I saw that you needed my help, and I felt if I didn’t do something in that moment it could have been the last time I ever saw you again as friends…”

“Don’t be silly Caspar, we’ll always be friends.” Ashe chuckles as he replies, nudging Caspar in the arm as he does so. As he does he notices how well toned Caspar’s muscles are, and he finds himself staring, to the point that the words just tumble out. “Wow Caspar, your body is really something else…”

Embarrassment floods to the silver haired boy’s face as he realizes the words that had just left his mouth, even still though he kept looking onward, hoping Caspar wouldn’t notice his accidental expression of excitement.

“Thanks Ashe! I train every day to get my body in fit fighting form!” The blue haired boy exclaims as he stands up and flexes his arms, showing his whole body off to the world. It was too much for Ashe, his face would again grow hot and he pulled Caspar down back into the water. Caspar protests. “Hey Ashe, what gives? You complimented my form, so I was just giving you a better look…”

Ashe gave a resigned sigh. Caspar was ever oblivious, or maybe that had been what Ashe had assumed. It wasn’t easy to tell what Caspar was really thinking at times, but nonetheless, his bravery left Ashe in awe. As a means of payback Caspar pressed his body against Ashe and brought him back down into the water, until they both sat there, both blushing and laughing at each other.

Eventually the sun was more visible in the sky now, it had become ten o’clock from what Ashe could tell by reading the placement of the sun. When the two made their way out of the water an obstacle hit them when they set foot on the grass clearing. They lacked towels.

Caspar probably didn’t even think about a method of drying himself when he left, and Ashe shook his head at not having thought about this himself before jumping in. It was easy enough to just get changed into their clothes whilst their bodies were still wet, but it was no guarantee how long it would be until they’d have fresh clothes again, keeping them dry was important. To Ashe’s shock Caspar just started shaking himself down like a dog.

“Come on Ashe, it works better than it looks!” Caspar said, appearing to be pretty much dry, he started to dress himself. Ashe blushed a little at the thought but gave it a try anyway, the result- he got dizzy and found himself falling, Caspar gets his arm through his sleeve just in time to catch his friend’s chest before he fell. “Not too fast, that’s how you get dizzy.”

“Noted…” Ashe says, the earth still moving. Both boys chuckled and now that Ashe was dry, he got dressed as well and they both made their way back to camp.

~

“We set out under the cover of night tomorrow.” Lonato says back at camp with the three former students huddled around him, looking at a map, his finger was placed atop Gaspard territory. “Gaspard territory may be compromised but nonetheless, it is the best option we have currently.”

“This trip would be taking us three days by walking; we must be gathering food before nightfall tomorrow.” Petra interjected; the boys took her word for it as she would no better than all of them about travel. “Ashe, would you be hunting with me?”

“Oh yes!” Ashe chimes up, this brings a smile to Petra’s face. Ashe’s skill would be a useful asset for some of her hunting tactics, she herself would be using her knowledge of trapping and her hunting knives. “What will Lonato and Caspar be doing?”

“We’ll be collecting water from that river from earlier. Petra said she has some magic that can purify it.” Caspar says with a grin, Petra places her face in her palm and shakes her head.

“I would just be filtering it; I would not be using the magic Caspar.” Petra says as she attempts to stop the two boys from laughing, Lonato just sighs but his amusement is also apparent. 

‘To be young again…’ he thought to himself. He couldn’t help but smile though, but it was rather melancholic. He could very well have died yesterday if it hadn’t been for Ashe, that would be a debt he would never be able to repay to his adopted son. ‘I’m sorry Christophe, it would seem that I cannot join you just yet…’

Ashe looked over at the man, seeing that he appeared lost in thought and gave him a smile. The man’s spirits were lifted slightly by the gesture, he looked upon the three kids and he knew they’d be alright.

~

“The scouts I sent still haven’t returned…” The blonde knight said as she paced the floor of her chambers. She had meant the scouts she sent to finish off Lonato and the traitorous students, if Rhea found out that they were indeed still alive there would definitely be complications. “I’m begging you Shamir; can you please go and find those students?!” 

“I’m on Rhea’s payroll, it seems risky to be doing such a task behind her back.” The dark-haired woman that sat on the bed chimed in with one of her subtle smirks, naturally she was gonna say yes anyway. “I can’t make any promises, but I’ll see what I can do.”

Catherine bows her head with her hands clasped together, her thanks and praises were starting to embarrass Shamir but deep down she was also having fun. Little did they realize that someone had overheard the entire thing, someone who was always wandering around so much that they didn’t even notice her presence.

“My friends are still alive?!” Flayn gasps to herself when she is out of earshot. This news filled her with joy, but why would Catherine have lied to lady Rhea about this? Flayn knew it best to keep this to herself though, but she also knew she had to do something about it too.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hey Everyone! 
> 
> So in this chapter I decided to focus a bit more on Ashe and Caspar's relationship, as well as putting certain conspirators into place, some of which you may have already noticed whilst reading. So I'm still writing other chapters and chapter 3 is already completed, that said I may not have it up until the new year, or at least after Christmas.
> 
> Hope you enjoyed this one and I'll see you all for the next one!


	3. Hanging By A Thread

“P-Petra!!” an alarmed voice called out as its owner thrashed around violently, suspended upside down by a rope. It belonged to Ashe, and the commotion came from him hanging from the leg by a snare trap. All Ashe could do was thrash about and regret not having remembered where each trap was placed, he was in a hurry but that was no excuse for his current predicament. “Petra! Are you there?!”

Only silence followed, Ashe heard a rustling in the bushes behind him and moved himself around to face its origin, hopeful that Petra had finally found him. To the boy’s dismay though it was not Petra, unless Petra had recently grown four times in size and had dark brown hair all over this definitely was not Petra. Ashe’s heart sank at the sight of the huge bear that slowly wandered its way toward him.  
“Oh Goddess…” he whispers to himself as he tries to avoid eye contact with the creature. He looks to his bow and quiver that now laid on the ground by him, a result of the surprise and momentum that came from being slung upside down suddenly. These factors meant that he had very few options available to him, even if he could reach his bow, all it would do is provoke the bear. There was only one thing he could think of to do, and if it managed to work it would only buy him a few more minutes at best.

And so Ashe removed the hoodie that he had been wearing for the past two days, rubbed it up against his now bare skin as to collect his sweat (and with it his scent) and threw it in a ball like fashion into the bushes to the left of the bear as far as he could. Luckily the bear took the bait, but this gambit wouldn’t last long. ‘How did things come to this?’ the silver haired boy thought to himself as he hung from the tree above.

~

“So why are we walking so far from camp to hunt Petra? Will we be able to find our way back alright?” the silver haired boy asked his magenta haired companion. The girl just smiled at him as they continued to walk, it was a while before she actually answered him.

“Animals are being wary of our camp, with how long we have been here they would be moving to a quieter spot.” The girl explained in a hushed voice, trying to explain it in a way that would make sense to Ashe. He nodded in understanding and took note that he should lower his own voice as well from her on.

The plan was whilst Caspar and Lonato were collecting water, Petra and Ashe would hunt for as much small game as they could, all in an attempt to be able to start heading towards Gaspard territory through the cover of night.

Ashe still had his doubts that they would find anything by going back home, but he wanted to hope it’d be safe there still. It was a childish dream to hope he could return home and the four of them could just live out a normal life now, but it was what kept him going. He had siblings that he needed to return for as well, if nothing else he needed to make sure they were taken care of.

“Ashe.” Petra said rather firmly, this snapped the boy back to reality. 

“I’m sorry Petra, what was that?” The boy asked rather embarrassed, he had completely zoned out thinking about home.

“I was suggesting that we be splitting up from here to be covering more ground.” She said as she pointed in a ninety-degree angle both ways. “I will set some traps here and we can be checking on them on our way back.”

Petra was right, it would be more efficient to cover more ground separately. The thought of wandering the forest alone was rather unsettling but the boy steeled himself, it needed to be done.

“I’ll head off in this direction then.” Ashe says as he gestures to the right. He started to walk off before stopping and turning back to Petra. “If you need any help please call out Petra.”

“I would be asking you the same Ashe; may the flame spirit protect you.” Petra says back to him, ending with that prayer of her people. Ashe didn’t quite know what it meant but he appreciated her words of support nonetheless. He made his way for his directed hunting path.

~

Hours passed as Ashe wandered the forest, hunting creatures such as birds and rabbits until he had a decent haul in his ‘Petra woven basket’. He did feel bad for the creatures but at the same time, just being one with the forest for just a few hours had quelled his anxieties for a time.

“I guess I should start heading back…” Ashe says to no one, forgetting for a moment that he is currently alone. “I wonder how Petra is doing…”

As he reached down to pick the basket up from the ground where he had rested he heard a voice, it was faint, but he could hear his name. His body stiffened as he heard the voice become slightly clearer, it was Petra. 

Without thinking Ashe started running back the way he had come, leaving his basket behind to run faster, he could always come back to get it later. He started to worry that he might get back too late, why would Petra be calling out to him if she weren’t in trouble. Ashe kept running along the path back to the crossroad until suddenly he was flung from the earth and now hang suspended upside down by a rope.

~

As Ashe came to the end of recounting what had happened in his head he noticed that the bear now approached again, the bait he made from his hoodie had run its course. Did he yell for help again? That might only act to aggravate the bear and make it reach him quicker. Ashe was at a loss for what to do, to a point that tears started to well up in his eyes. 

“After everything, is this how it all ends?” The boy laments to himself. Time was running short, the bear was close enough now that Ashe could feel its warm breath on his skin, but he didn’t dare open his eyes. If this was it he would rather go unaware and so he braced himself.

“Hyaaaah!” A voice rang out as a gust of wind blew towards Ashe’s face, followed by a monstrous moan. He finally allowed himself to open his eyes to witness the bear laid low on the forest floor, and a magenta haired girl sitting atop it, clutching a knife.

“P-Petra…” Ashe started to bawl as he saw her face look up at him, a soft and apologetic smile looked back at him.

“I am being sorry that I would not have been jumping in sooner Ashe.” The girl stated. That led Ashe to wonder how long she had been lying in wait. “I had been trying to warn you of the bear, I could not be acting until the bear was completely distracted.”

Ashe thought about Petra’s words and realized they did make sense, had she tried to attack any earlier the bear may have responded very violently in kind. The two looked at each other for a few moments, Ashe slung up half naked by a rope and Petra lying prostrate on top of a bear with her knife, both of their cheeks flushed red. 

“I-I’m sorry Petra!” the silver haired teen said as he tried to use his hands to cover up, but to no avail. His failed attempts just made him blush even harder. 

“It is fine Ashe, your plan for bait was being smart.” Petra said. Ashe had been confused at first, wondering if she had intended for him to be bear bait and then realized she meant the hoodie, though that felt so long ago now. “Maybe I should be tying you up more often.”

Ashe blushed a little at her comment, what did she mean? Before he had a chance to ask though she wrapped one of her arms around his back and used her other to throw a knife onto the ground by a tree. This had the rope’s grip on Ashe failing and he started to fall, Petra scooping him up before he hit the ground with both arms.

Ashe shrieked a little as this all happened but once he was standing on solid ground again his nerves settled a little. 

“What happened to your basket Ashe?” Petra asked and the realization that he had left it behind hit him.

“Oh no… I left it behind on the path when I heard you call out earlier…” Ashe said lamentedly. There was no guarantee that his basket was still intact, it had been at least an hour or two since he had left it at this point, it was getting dark too. 

“I will be going to find it Ashe, it will not be taking me too long.” Petra said with a smile, she lay her own basket down next to Ashe and headed off before the boy could say a word in protest. And so, Ashe sat there next to her basket full of game as it grew closer to nightfall. 

“Was I meant to head back with this, or am I waiting?” Ashe had started to wonder to himself aloud but pushed the thoughts from his mind, he was going to wait for Petra regardless of her intentions. It didn’t take long at all for Petra to return with the basket either, by some miracle it was still intact. 

“We should really be heading back now.” Petra laughed a little as she returned, the smile on her face was enough to lift Ashe’s spirits. He got up and they both headed towards camp with their haul. ‘Maybe I should leave the hunting to Petra from now on…’ Ashe thought to himself as they walked.

~

“Did you find any good meat?!” was the first thing that was said when Ashe and Petra came back from the woods, and it came from Caspar. Lonato had looked on with one eyebrow raised at the two, noting that Ashe was missing his shirt the man gave the boy a devilish grin.

“I see things got pretty steamy out in the woods my boy.” Lonato said as he patted Ashe on the shoulder and brought him in close. “Did she make you a man?”

Ashe’s face went beet red at the mention of the idea, earning Lonato an elbow to the rib from the boy. He groaned in pain but walked back to where he had sat prior, complaining about how he didn’t deserve that to himself. Caspar just looked on in confusion.

“There’s no steam in the forest…” The blue haired boy questioned to himself before finally noticing Ashe’s new appearance. “Hey Ashe, aren’t you cold like that? What happened to your hoodie?”

Petra and Ashe had agreed that they wouldn’t mention the bear, there was no use worrying the other two over something that had already passed, so when it came the time to up with an excuse, Ashe was lost for words.

“I lost it?” The boy muttered, more like a question in itself than an answer to Caspar’s. Lonato just started chuckling in the corner and Ashe had regretted answering at all, needless to say his face was still red.

“Well I can’t have you getting sick on me, so here.” Caspar said as he removed his own button up shirt, electing to keep the button up vest he wore over it. Ashe started panicking a bit whilst Caspar did so, why right here in front of everyone? Ashe couldn’t understand why the other two onlookers weren’t saying anything, was this normal to them? Caspar handed Ashe the white shirt and Ashe nodded in what was a mix of appreciation and embarrassment, he spent no time at all covering his body with the garment. “That better Ashe?”

“Yes, thank you Caspar…” Ashe replied, still heavily embarrassed. He looked down at the ground trying to gather his feelings but all he could notice was Caspar’s scent now on him. He scrambled to change the topic of speech to literally anything else before he dug himself any deeper. “S-Should we maybe be h-heading off soon?”

“I am in agreement; it is being wise to start heading out of the forests now while we still have some light.” Petra chimed in, Ashe silently thanked her for helping change the subject, even if she didn’t realize she had. The four all agreed and so they headed off, leaving their home of two and a half days behind them.

~

“Ashe!” Byleth yelled out as she awoke in the infirmary. She looked around in a daze as she tried to sit up on her bed. “How long was I asleep for…?”

“Good morning Professor, it has been three days since you were injured in that awful battle.” A light refined voice spoke up from her left, Byleth hadn’t realized that she had company and the question was more aimed at herself. The answer had come from a young girl with green hair, Flayn.

“Oh, good morning Flayn…” Byleth said to the girl beside her before returning to her thoughts. Was everything that just happened just a dream? If she left this room with Flayn now would they go to the dining hall and find Ashe, Caspar and Petra awaiting them for breakfast? 

“I fear not, what transpired on that field was reality…” A voice spoke to her, this time in her head. It was Sothis, a being that seemed to be connected to Byleth’s mind. “The power of time was able to save your student, but he is now no longer here.”

Byleth felt a pain in her chest as she received this news, but what did it mean? Flayn looked on at her concerned, easing her not to push herself so hard. 

“Professor, I am sorry to ask this of you after having just woken up, but I know nothing of what transpired in the battle three days ago.” The girl lamented as she looked at the other woman for answers. “You just called out for Ashe, so you must know… What happened to our friends?”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hey all! In this chapter I decided I wanted to flesh out Petra a bit more, that said I also struggle to write as Petra so bear with me, I promise I'll get better. The next chapter is going to be more of a Byleth and Flayn chapter, showing how things are back at the monastery so look forward to it. Until then, hope you enjoyed the chapter!


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